When the Sun Finally Rises
by Picklesquidly The Warlock
Summary: Kiku is left wounded after the atomic bombings of World War II. Alfred has made it his job to take care of him until he recovers. What he really wants is forgiveness, but Kiku doesn't think he can give it to him. Sequel to my one shot 'Even the Worst of Scars Heal.' First chaptered fic! Ameripan FTW! There may be fluff in the future. Rated T just in case.
1. Chapter 1

Kiku Honda stood alone over a tall, Grassy hill, at the edge of the ocean. His black uniform was dyed darker in patches of blood. In his hand was his precious katana, now drawn and slowly dripping crimson liquid on the green turf. His dark eyes were trained on something out on the horizon.

Before him was a fleet of navy ships. From his view and distance, it was impossible to see the writing on the ships that labeled them, but Kiku knew very well who they belonged to.

Gripping his katana ever so tightly, his raised his sword to meet the American in front of him.

"Upon my life, I will not surrender until I die."

Those words marked his biggest mistake. His stubbornness was driving him to the point of no return.

Suddenly, the world was on fire.

With a shriek, Kiku jumped out of his covers, his hands fumbling for the Katana that he always left next to his futon. Wide, terrified eyes scanned the room carefully, only to find his usual room, completely undisturbed.

It was only a nightmare.

Breathing heavily, Japanese looked down at the bandages around his body. He had opened one of the wounds again. Wincing and coughing, he fell back into his bed, trying to ignore the constant, burning pain that he felt every minute of his life ever since that day.

"Kiku? Are you okay? I heard you scream so I thought something happened."

Alfred looked up from his own futon, laid several feet away from Kiku. His expression was concerned. "Do you need anything?"

The latter gave no answer but silence, pulling the thick comfy covers over his disheveled ebony hair and slowly rolling over to the other side, earning a quiet sigh from the American. Kiku just wanted Alfred to shut up. He was the last person he wanted to talk to at the moment.

At the end of the war, Alfred had finally gotten the island country to surrender, by using his final weapon: the Atomic bombs. Such a force, though, had sent his former enemy into a crippled, wounded state. Alfred immediately felt remorse and regret for his actions, and thus decided to care for Kiku until he got better. From then on Alfred would stay in Kiku's house, usually staying there for the night in case something happened, and took care of the smaller country, changing his bandages and feeding him and whatnot.

Kiku, on the other hand, was far from grateful for Alfred's kindness. Ever since he came, Kiku would never talk, or even face the American whenever he could. When he did say anything, it was cold and far from happy. He was bitter, and clearly showed he did not want Alfred here, even though it was his job to help him.

And that hurt Alfred.

Alfred only wanted to pay back Kiku for what he had done, but the Japanese refused to accept the American country. Alfred didn't know why Kiku acted that way, but it hurt him a lot. He only wanted forgiveness, although he often told himself that maybe he didn't deserve it.

Morning came sooner than Kiku expected. He raised one hand to shield his eyes from the warm sunlight. Groaning, he pulled the covers over his scratched up face, willing for the bright beams to go away. He was so tired. Ever since the nightmare, he hasn't fallen asleep. This happened often. Ever since the bombing Kiku's sleep has been marred with terrible memories of the war, every single night, and he rarely got any shut eye, which didn't exactly help with his bedridden condition. This concerned his companion greatly, although Kiku didn't let him help him at all about it.

Alfred too had woken up a bit later, yawning ad stretching as he always did. Pulling on a shirt and jeans, he turned to Kiku with a smile.

That smile. He hate it.

It was more than obvious that although Alfred did his best to grin, guilt and bother was hidden behind it. Sometimes Kiku wondered how on earth he still managed to smile like that, especially with all the turmoil. His smile annoyed him to no end, but he didn't know why.

"I'll make you some breakfast okay?"

Kiku was snapped out of his thoughts as Alfred offered to cook. He didn't face the blonde nor did he say anything, but nevertheless Alfred bounced up and trotted to the kitchen and began cooking breakfast. The aroma of eggs and bacon soon filling the home.

After about 20 minutes Alfred returned with a tray of food, flicking on the lights as he walked in. In his plate were scrambled eggs, bacon, and orange juice. Alfred didn't know how to cook a Japanese breakfast, so he made American instead. Kiku don't really care anyways.

Setting the tray next to his bed, Alfred lowered himself on his knees and tapped Kiku's shoulder, making sure it wasn't the injured one.

"Wake up, sleepyhead!" He said quietly.

Eventually Kiku opened his eyes and roused himself from his sleepless drowsiness. With Alfred's help he propped himself up on some pillows.

"You're really thin. Here, eat."

The American raised a fork of some scrambled eggs. "Open up."

Angrily, Kiku snatched the fork with his shaky hands.

"I know how to feed myself. Luckily you didn't go as far as blowing my hands off." He hissed, shoving the piece of egg in his mouth, not even looking at Alfred the entire time.

Alfred's bright grin fell, and he shuffle back a little to watch over Kiku as he ate. He took this chance to look over the Japanese nation. His skin was sickly pale and wrapped in bandages, and in some places covered with bruises and gashes. He was skinny, and move around only with great difficulty, his hands shaking as he grasped the fork and ate. Alfred chewed on his lip nervously. He looked awful. His eyes wandered to Kiku's torso, wrapped up in gauze.

"You opened your wound again."

Kiku didn't say anything.

"I'll have to change the bandages later."

Still no reply.

"Want me to go get some of Arthur's magic fairy dust to use for medicine?"

Alfred pursed his lips and laid back, balancing on his turned hands and crossing his legs in front. He watched Kiku slowly eat the breakfast, leaving behind only a few crumbs and an empty glass of juice.

"Can I change your bandages now? You don't want the blood to dry up and stick you know." Alfred said softly when Kiku finished and set the plate aside.

In silence the Japanese nodded listlessly. Good. Sometimes he would just ignore his questions or shoo him away. A little more confident, Alfred pulled off the covers and slid his hands under Kiku's legs and shoulders, lifting up the frail form easily and carrying him to the table, bridal style.

Kiku flinched, only partially from pain. Oh, how he wish he could walk so that he didn't have to be tossed around in such an embarrassing way.

"Would you rather walk over there yourself?" Alfred said with a bit of humor, reading Kiku's mind.

Rolling his eyes, Kiku sat down as Alfred quickly opened a drawer to grab some bandages and return with a handful of them. He sighed and set it down to the side.

Both countries hated this part. It was always extremely painful for Kiku, and the other did not like looking at the bloody wounds that he himself had made.

As Alfred slowly began to pull away at the red fabric, Kiku stuffed his knuckles in his mouth to keep from shouting out in pain, although he did anyways. Alfred hated it when he did that, it just made himself feel worse that he was causing the island country all this misery. He tried his best to peel off the stained gauze as fast and gently as possible. Alfred bit his lip as he revealed the two horrible ragged wounds that tore across Kiku's side and shoulder.

If he were a normal human, Kiku would've died instantly. That was one con to being a country; you were forced to endure unimaginable suffering and still not die.

Once the used bandages were removed, Alfred began wrapping the new ones around his injuries and replacing some band-aids. Finally Alfred dared to look up, frowning.

"You okay?"

He reached up with one hand to brush away the brimming tears, but only earned himself a weak slap on the arm. Grumbling something along the lines of 'sheesh, I was only trying to help,' he gave up and took Kiku back to his bed, laying him down on the mattress.

Standing back up, Alfred walked into the living room, throwing himself on the couch. He rubbed his temple, completely stressed out. It was like that all the time, never talking to him or looking at him; when he did it was always something cold and angry.

Alfred groaned. He only wanted forgiveness, but how the hell was he supposed to get it? Honestly he wasn't surprised, he just blew up Kiku's cities twice and injured him to such extent, but still. It was so hard... It was hard to look at Kiku like that; beaten up and sick and always so bitter.

Alfred reached into his pocket and pulled out his cellphone. He should probably call someone for a bit of advice; it wasn't like he was getting anywhere.

He quickly began scrolling through his list of contacts.

Heracles would probably be asleep or fighting with Sadiq.

Arthur? Maybe.

Yao would probably be mad.

Matthew? No, he's to antisocial.

Ivan? Oh FUCK no.

Feliciano or Lovino wouldn't be any help.

He continued scrolling through, and after looking through the entire list, he settled on the English country, tapping the call button.

"Yo, Arthur?"

The other country replied immediately.

"Is Kiku okay? God forbid you did more shit to him. You'd better have-"

"Whoa whoa, cool the fuck down." Alfred forgot that Arthur and Kiku were really good friends. "He's... Uh... Um... Better than before. Except for one thing."

"What the hell did you do?"

"Wait, I didn't do anything! It's just, well..."

"Spit it out."

"He's been acting so bitter. He never looks at me or talks to me, and it's really bothering me."

"I'm not surprised. If anything you pretty much deserve it."

Alfred mumbled something. "Oh Haha, thanks. I think I got that. Could ya just help me?"

A pause, then Arthur answered again.

"Well, naturally he's not going to warm up to you in five seconds. Basically, all I can say is just do your best not you bother him. Just be really nice to him, even if he's not to you. Eventually he won't become so reserved, but since you're Alfred-"

"Hey!"

"-He'll probably still be mad about that. Who knows, he could be for the rest of his life. Anyways, try to socialize with him more after he's healed more, do things with him that he likes -video games, right?- Maybe he'll forgive you once he realizes that you regret what you did. But who knows. That might not work, but there's a chance."

Alfred nodded quietly throughout the whole lecture.

"I'll try it. Thanks bro."

"Just be careful with him, if you dare do anything-"

Alfred hung up quickly before the Englishman began ranting again. Sighing, he stuffed the phone back into his pocket and turned his to Kiku's room, which was was only sounded by faint whimpering and sobbing.

Wait, what?

Alfred bolted out of the couch and looked over from behind the wall, into Kiku's room.

The poor guy had his face in his hands an covering his eyes, unrelenting tears streaming down in his cheeks and wetting his palms. He whimpered through gritted teeth, and seemed to also be moaning a couple words, although Alfred wasn't able to hear them.

Alfred felt as if a knife stabbed his heart. Why was he crying? He didn't really cry when changing the bandages, even if it hurt like hell.

Quietly the American inched to the doorway of the room. "Kiku... What's wrong?"

He received no answer, and didn't really expect one. Stepping into the room, he walked to the latter's side. Kiku continued sobbing, not really noticing Alfred's presence.

Slowly, Alfred wrapped his hands around the raven-haired man's frail body, trying not to touch any of his wounds. "It's okay Kiku... I'm sorry." He whispered quietly, hoping to comfort the smaller country.

Kiku visibly flinched at Alfred's warm touch, as if Alfred was going to hurt him. Not noticing this, gently the blonde pulled his hands from from his face, rubbing the tears away.

Kiku seemed to lay frozen for a moment, giving Alfred the chance look at his face. His eyes were red from crying and his expression was... Desperate, is a good way to put it.

Suddenly Kiku yanked his hands away from Alfred's soft grasp, fresh new tears threatening to spill. His brown eyes were filled with fear and hate.

"Stay away from me!" He cried hoarsely. "Don't touch me!" He dug his nails into the palms of his hands, scrambling under the covers.

Alfred stared at the smaller nation despairingly. Did his touch really have such an effect on him? All he did was give him a hug, maybe it scared him when Alfred did it so suddenly. Quickly he stood and half ran out of the room.

Well, it was worth a try.

**aw HELL yeah! I'm so excited to write this story :D**

**first chaptered fic too, so hopefully this will turn out well! Since its my first one, I'd like some constructive critisizm too ^^**


	2. Chapter 2

Kiku stayed in bed for the rest of the afternoon, refusing to eat lunch or even go sit in his garden, which he did often ever since he was wounded. He didn't even sleep. All he did was lay on his side, and when he had finished crying, he stared at the wall with tired, listless eyes, under the covers nose down.

Alfred had fled back to the living room and sat there depressingly, watching TV although he wasn't really paying attention to it. All he could think about was what had happened before.

_"Stay away from me!" "Don't touch me!"_

Alfred saw the look in his eyes. Kiku was completely terrified.

Alfred curled his hands into fists in his lap. It never felt good to be looked in such away as if he felt as if you were going to kill him.

Note taken, never give Kiku unexpected hugs.

"Ugh! Why the hell can't I do anything right!"

Alfred pried himself from the couch, walking to the front room and grabbing his car keys. Flinging open the door and closing it behind him, he left the house and climbed into his car.

Anywhere but here. Kiku would be okay if he left for just a little bit, right? He just needed to clear his head, maybe get a couple things too.

Turning on the car, Alfred backed out of the driveway and headed towards the town close by.

Arthur walked up the trail of stepping stones, artfully set in the lush garden, leading up to a house in the midst of the trees and flowers. He sighed nolgastically; it's been a while since he'd been here... Last time was before the war. World War II had ended their alliance and pitted them against opposite sides, so he was glad he could finally meet with him again.

As he walked past the driveway, Arthur noticed that one of the cars, Alfred's, was gone. He must've gone shopping or something; it wasn't like Alfred to just leave Kiku to go do something else.

Continuing up the steps, the Brit made his way to the door, and quickly knocked on it.  
There was no answer.

Arthur stopped, wondering if he should just walk inside. Eventually, he opened the door quietly, hanging his coat before stepping in to remove his shoes, as he always did.

"Kiku?"  
Still no reply.

Arthur walked farther into the house until he reached Kiku's room. He stopped, then walked inside to his bedside. Shutting his mouth before he could gasp.

England was shocked at how terrible his old friend looked. He knew it was bad, but still, he looked awfully sick and he was bandaged everywhere. The island country was facing the wall, his eyes shut tight and hands shaking as he clutched the thick blankets.

"You look terrible."

Kiku lay still for a moment, then rolled over to face the Englishman, opening his eyes to face the guest. Who's voice was that? certainly not Alfred.  
Green eyes, blonde hair, thick, weird eyebrows...

"Asa-San?" Kiku asked tentatively, followed by a bout of coughing.

"That's me." Arthur replied, smiling sadly, reaching for Kiku's hand and holding it in his. "Are you holding on well? You don't look so good."

Kiku closed his eyes. "Somewhat. I guess I'm alive." He replied, although his tone did not betray any form of humor.

"It hurts a lot, doesn't it." Arthur said quietly, looking down over his sick companion, not even bothering with his tsundere act. "I hope that it's not to bad."

Kiku bit his lip, squeezing his hand. "All the time. It's unbearable."

"But you'll pull through it, I know that." Arthur replied encouragingly, giving Kiku a small smile. "Just don't give up okay? You'll be better in no time."

Kiku, for the first time in a long, long while, smiled back, even if it was a tiny one. "Thank you, Asa-San."

Arthur sat down silently for a moment, just having a little quiet time with his old pal, catching up with each other. After a couple minutes, he spoke up again, this time in a different, quieter tone.  
"Is Alfred taking good care of you? He isn't hurting you or trying anything funny, right?"

Kiku sighed, and turned his head so he could stare at the ceiling. He didn't reply for a little while, contemplating his thoughts.  
"I hate him."

Arthur sat silently, knowing that Kiku had more to say.

"It's infuriating. He's the one that did this to me, but he's also the one that supposed to help me get back on my feet? I don't understand, it's so stupid. If he destroyed me in the first place, why is he trying to help me?"

After his short rant, Kiku doubled over, coughing harshly. Alarmed, Arthur rubbed his back and let him settle back into his bed, giving Kiku time to rest. "Don't tire yourself out. I know... I know he can be such a dumbass sometimes, but really he does mean well. He does. He regrets what he did to you."

Kiku stared at Arthur skeptically.

"He told me so. He only wants your forgiveness."

"Why does he bother about that?"

Arthur shifted his gaze, unsure what to say.

"I see." Kiku murmured softly.

Arthur stayed at Kiku's house for a little longer, fetching Kiku and himself cups of tea for the two of them to drink, which the Japanese barely managed to finish. They chatted a little bit about small trivial things, such as tea and how France was trying to spread his 'fabulous fashion' to Italy, but they mostly just stayed silent.  
Soon the sun was beginning to set, signaling the end of another day. Arthur saw this and stood up.

"I need to go now." Arthur said softly, giving Kiku a reassuring pat. "I'll come visit again sometime soon. Get better, okay? And don't let that silly idiot bother you too much."

Kiku nodded slowly and smiled a tiny bit. "I'll see you then, Asa-San."

Alfred again smiled brightly, this time carrying something small and fuzzy in his arms. "Kiku's gonna love this!" He opened up the car door and quickly jumped out.

Running up excitedly to the door, he opened it up and walked inside. "I'm hooome!" He called.

"Oh, you're back." Arthur said, just then putting on his coat.

"Holy shit! Arthur dude, why are ya doing here?" Alfred asked, a little surprised to see the other country.

"Just checking up on Kiku." Arthur replied. Then, in a quieter voice he added, "You'd better take very good care of him if you want him to get better. He's really sick."

Alfred nodded. "I'll do the best I can; I'm going I try out your advice. Did he say anything?"

Arthur blinked. "Well, um, that's not important."

"Oh, okay then. See ya later! I have to go give something to Keeks." Alfred waved hastily to Arthur and ran into the house.

"Poor Kiku." Arthur muttered.

"Hey Kiku, I have something for you." Alfred walked into the room, holding the fuzzy thing behind his back so that the bedridden country couldn't see.

Kiku was resting in his bed, thinking about Arthur's previous words. He ignored the sound of the door opening, but as soon as he heard that familiar voice, he pulled the covers over his face, hoping that Alfred would go away.

"Kiku."  
"Kiku."  
"Keeks."  
"Kikuuuu."  
"Kiku."  
"Keeks my man."  
"Aphffffplllthblt."

Finally, Kiku gave up and pulled down the blankets to look at Alfred, still wary. He hasn't been back since his... Outburst. He was nervous about what the other was about to do.

"I'm really reeaaally sorry about earlier... so I got you something that'll cheer you up!" Alfred reached out and handed his roommate a small, young cat that was black with a white muzzle, chest, and paws. A bright blue bow was tied around the kitten's neck, like a present.  
Kiku flinched as Alfred abruptly held out the small pet, staring at him anxiously.  
The American kneeled by his side and gently placed the kitty on Kiku's chest, which meowed and began to paw at his face.

Kiku looked a little surprised when Alfred revealed the little animal. A kitten? Why did he buy him a kitten? Kiku gazed at Alfred for a moment, then turned his eyes back to the little creature. He began to weakly stroke behind the little guy's ears, Beginning enjoying his new companion.

Alfred's smile stretched even wider when he noticed the new joy in Kiku, even if he knew that his happiness would be very short lived. He was a little scared that Kiku would freak out or something; it was a good thing that he liked cats. Maybe he should have asked Heracles beforehand to save him all that worry.

"I'll leave you two alone." Alfred whispered, quickly stepping out of the room and walking to the living room, switching on the TV again. Even though he knew that Kiku still didn't trust him or liked him, it made him feel wonderful that at least he could be a happy for a little while.

Maybe get Kiku a couple more kittens?

...Nah.

**This chappy was a little harder to write, writers block ya know? Well, I gave it a slightly fluffier ending, which kitties! I'm sure the little guy is familiar to many of you ;3**

**I dunno what I should name this cat though. It's really awkward to call it Tama though, since that's my name even though everyone calls Japan-Cat Tama 0.0**

**my hetalia friends tease me about it alot xD**

**okay, I'm sorry, I couldn't help but add a sprinkle of friendly AsaKiku. It's just... GOD I love that pairing, just a much as Ameripan. It's my second OTP ;3;**

**Mleh, I hope you maybe kinda enjoyed this crappy-chappy :P. I already have chaptee 3 written, I'm just going over it before I post.**

**buh bye, my bunnies!**


	3. Chapter 3

Soon two weeks past, marking the end of the first month Alfred had spent his time taking care of Kiku. Not much happened then, it was mostly the usual. Kiku would often pet and occasionally, on days when he didn't feel as much pain as usual, play with the new kitten by making it chase feathers or his hand. Most of the time though, it curled up on the pillow next to Kiku and slept in the afternoons while his human companion was awake. Arthur had also visited recently, and so had Heracles one day, fussing over Kiku's new cat. He offered to give Kiku a couple more, which he quickly declined.

If he remembered correctly, even Ludwig and Feli had visited, although Feliciano had to work hard to keep him from punching Alfred's face in. Despite such, it warmed his heart to see Kiku a little happier, although an irritated feeling stirred deep inside.

why wasn't it him?

Despite it all though, Kiku still never talked to Alfred. He hasn't snapped at him again or anything, but their relationship on his part still wasn't improving, which discouraged Alfred. He wanted to be closer to the other nation.

Half a week ago Kiku had contracted a high fever which still hadn't completely gone away, which led to Alfred having to stay awake a late portion of the night to get him a cold towel or medicine, although he didn't take too much just in case. He coughed a great deal, and was slightly delusional with fever. It wasn't as bad as it was earlier, but damn, it was persistent.

"It's still not gone?" Alfred grumbled exasperatedly. He brought in another rag soaked then wringed out in cold water. He folded it and put it on Kiku's warm forehead, hoping to make him feel a little better.

"Ngh... Hot..." Kiku panted, curling his body into a tight ball under the thin covers (Alfred replaced the heavy ones) and fisted them in his hands. Alfred frowned, wiping the sweat from his face and putting back the rag. Kiku didn't seem to be too much better today either.

It seemed that Kiku's condition had begun to worsen again, even though he had seemed to get a little better after Alfred started taking care of him. After Kiku had gotten the fever he stopped eating, and was constantly burdened with the pain from his wounds in addition to sickness. Alfred was terrified on Kiku's deteriorating condition, especially because he didn't know what was causing it. Maybe it was physiological, or he wasn't taking good care of him? Who knows.

Alfred was still concerned. Why had he gotten worse? You'd think that he would only get better. Maybe he hold consult someone and ask about it, just in case.

And he knew just who to talk to.

Alfred jogged up to the front of a house in a secluded bamboo forest, using his hands to push away the tall woody stalks, revealing only more forest and mountain. He began to get worried about Kiku back at home too, because Alfred was a little scared that he might never reach the place that he was searching for.

"Jesus Christ, why did he make a house so fucking high and far from any civilization!?" Alfred cursed irately, resting on the ground for a few minutes before knocking on the door. "You'd better be there, or I ran up here for nothing!"

Just before Alfred banged on the door again, a Chinese man with a long ponytail answered. He had amber eyes and a deep frown etched in his face. "Don't knock so hard, you'll ruin my door, aru! Now, why are you here?"

Alfred gave his old ally a quick glare, but didn't devel any further. It would be pointless to get on His bad side; he needed a few questions to be answered.

"You know a ton about countries right? Well, I have some stuff to ask about." He replied cursorily.

Yao rolled his eyes. "Come on in. I'll prepare some coffee for you." He opened the door to let Alfred in, which he did.

The two settled by the coffee table on opposite sides of the couch, quietly drinking coffee and tea.

"So what did you want to ask me about, aru?" Yao queried, raising one eyebrow curiously.

"It's about Kiku." ignoring Yao's grumble, he continued. "You see, he was getting better, but lately his condition had gotten worse again. He got a fever, but I don't think it's that. Any idea what happened?"

Yao narrowed his eyes, and took a large sip from his tea, and leaned back into his seat. "I see. Obviously Kiku had experienced some extra trauma that had slowed his recovery, even if it was small. Did anything happen?"

Alfred fumbled with his fingers, looking down. "Um... Yeah... I guess. A little over a week ago or so, I found him crying, and when I tried to comfort him I guess I scared him instead..." He explained shamefully. And the fact that I'm around him at all.

Yao nodded. "That makes more sense, aru. Listen carefully Alfred, this is something that you need to know. Countries are much stronger than regular humans, but at the same time they're extremely fragile. Kiku is experiencing far too much turmoil right now; losing the war, being bombed twice, injured in such a horrible, painful way, and he's now emotionally scarred an wounded too."

"Yeah, I can tell." Alfred muttered. "Don't rub it in."

Yao shrugged. "Further more, he's probably angry and or terrified -or both- of you in some way."

"You are also really-"

"I fucking get it!"

Alfred took a large swig out of his coffee, and looked down at the table to avoid Yao's eyes.

"You're scaring him, Alfred. Don't you realize this? Because of what you did, he can't trust you; he's afraid you're going to do something more to him."

At this point, Alfred just wanted to leave. He didn't like the truth of his situation.

"Maybe someone else should take care of him?"

Alfred froze, staring at the man in front of him.

Someone else?

Kiku didn't appreciate him or want him there to help him, he got along far better with other countries anyways. Maybe... It should be someone else to help him on the road to recovery?

For some reason that Alfred didn't know, he felt sad, and maybe even a little jealous. But why? It's not like Kiku liked him, so why should he stay? He mentally facepalmed. He... He would miss him. And for some strange reason Alfred didn't understand, he would hate to see Kiku in the care of anyone else. He needed Kiku's forgiveness anyways, or he would never be able to live down what he did.

The Chinese country watched Alfred carefully as the young nation argued with himself in his mind. A small smile crossed his lips. Clearly Alfred didn't like that idea, and even if he didnt know why, but Yao did.

"Don't worry, even if Kiku's condition worsens, as long as you don't cause him too much trouble, he should begin to get better again."

Alfred didn't find that too relieving in his new predicament either, but decided to ignore it for now.

"Alright, i got it. Thanks old man, I'll... Think about what you said." Alfred replied, gulping down the rest of the coffee and streaking out the door.

"Don't call me old, aru!"

"Hey Keeks, I'm home." Alfred murmured, looking around the house. He took off his shoes by the front door. "I'm going to make some dinner." Alfred furrowed his eyebrows. It was really quiet in there. Usually he could hear Kiku, or his kitten that slept by him.

Odd. Alfred waited a minute, then two. "Um.. Kiku? Are you there?"

Still silent.

Becoming more alarmed, Alfred called again. "Uh... Hey, this isn't funny..."

Shit.

Alfred ran into bedroom. Kiku was probably sleeping or something in here right? He turned on the lights so he could see a little better...

Only to find it empty.

"Kiku!?" Alfred shouted, looking around the room to see if he was there. "Oh my god, Kiku! Where are you!?"

Shit shitshitshitshit. This was bad.

Alfred leaped out of the room and scrambled into the kitchen, no luck there.

He sprinted into the living room, looking over the couch. No Kiku.

Soon he lay on the ground panting. He had run through the house and searched every room possible, but Kiku was no where to be seen. Did something bad happen to him? What if he was hurt?

Alfred slumped into the chair in the dining table and banged his head against it. Fuck. Where would Kiku be? It didn't make any sense; Kiku couldn't walk anyways and if he tried, he probably wouldn't make it out of his room.

He looked up from his head banging despairingly.

Wait a second. There was something on the table.

Alfred narrowed his eyes and reached over to pick it up. It was a piece of paper; a brief note. With shaking hands, he began to read the short words scrawled on the folded sheet.

_Alfred,_

_There's something I've been wanting from you. Unfortunately I think you won't just give it to me, so I've decided to take your little Kiku here. He fought pretty hard for someone whos half dead, da? Don't worry, I won't kill him, yet. It depends. A trade, how does that sound?_

The letter wasn't signed, but it was more than obvious who wrote this note.

Alfred's eyes widened in disbelief. He had to read over the note once more to comprehend what this meant.

Eventually, his shock turned over to horror and fury.

"FUCKING IVAN! I'll tear his head off his FUCKING SHOULDERS!" Alfred ripped the writing asunder and threw the chair to the side. He made a mad dash to the front door, flinging open and tearing down the street.

His only thought was that he hoped Kiku would be okay.

* * *

**BAM!**

**Didn't see that coming, did ya!?**

**So one of my reviewers suggested that I might add Ivan as the antagonist in this story. I thought about this a LOT. I didn't know if I should add him, because this story is focused on America and Japan's relationship after THEIR war, but then I thought it would make things a lot more interesting, and easier for me to think up and write what I'm planning for the following chapters. **

**So I decided to go with it. Lets hope this turns out okay.**

**Hopefully this won't turn out all cliche and gross and ugly, I still don't know how to write a good fanfiction :P**

**Anyways, thanks for reading! I'd love some reviews. If any of you guys have suggestions or maybe something you'd like to point out, please please PLEASE let me know! I'd appreciate anything to make my story better 030**

**Buh bye, my bunnies ^3^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Oh my GOD, I'm sososososo sorry for the late update ;-; I guess I kinda got lazy, I don't really have any excuse.**

**Anyways, enjoy the crappy-chappy.**

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Alfred basically zoomed into the front yard of a tall, dark house and slammed the car open, not bothering to close it. He stumbled through the deep, crunchy-soft snow, cursing it all the way. The entire place was blanketed in the powdery substance, which only sent more acrimonies streaming out of Alfred's mouth. Eventually he had trudged all the way to the entrance of the towering home.

"Open the fuck up!" Alfred growled, banging his fist on a heavy, worn door. "I'm going to fucking tear your head off once I get in there!"

Alfred huffed in exasperation. When he didn't receive an answer (although thats because he only waited two seconds) he decided to knock the door down instead, using his foot to kick it out of it's hinges. He stormed into the gloomy house and looked around desperately. Kiku was supposed to be in here right?

"You'd better explain all of this god damn well you son of a bitch!" He threatened, clenching his fists together, ready to throw them into whatever came at him.

The only thing to greet Alfred's "extravagant" entrance was a thick, heavy silence. Alfred inhaled sharply. Damn it was creepy in here. Where the hell was that sunflower-loving weirdo?

"My my, what a temper. I'll have to fix that, you know."

A deceivingly childish voice came from around the corner, breaking up the soundless atmosphere. Alfred turned quickly to the sound, ready for whatever or whoever was going to appear.

Moments later a tall, looming figure revealed itself. His neck was wrapped in a long, pale scarf, and he was dressed in a tan colored trench coat of sorts. His unusual purple eyes were shining with malice.

Ivan, Alfred's former ally, and now enemy.

He never liked this shifty queer.

Alfred whipped around to meet Ivan's gaze with an angry glare. "YOU! Where the hell is Kiku, you damned commie!?" he hissed, shaking his fist in Ivan's face.

"Easy on the language, Alfred." Ivan replied, waving his hand dismissively at the American. "You'll see him very soon. Anyways, I'm glad you took up my offer. I'd hate to kill poor Kiku. He's had enough near-death experiences, hasn't he?" Ivan taunted, eyeing the American with an amused look.

Ivan knew about everything too? Godammit, he might as well be world famous.

"Shut the fuck up, or I'll make you." Alfred retorted.

Ivan couldn't help but grin a little. "Now," Ignoring Alfred's words, he gestured in mock politeness to the hallway, "Please follow me."

Alfred nearly exploded in anger. Ivan acted like this was all a game! Well, I'll see if you're still going to play or not once I smash your smirking face straight into the wall.

"Coming?"

Grudgingly he followed the Russian farther into the house. The tall building had a sort of dark, shady look to it; it certainly needed a repairing here and there. It was pretty big though. The one thing about the house that irritated Alfred was the cold. Sure it was freezing, but at least there should be a heater of some sort on, right? The piling snow wasn't helping either. Alfred began to wish that Ivan would just freeze to death here.

It seemed like hours before the Russian finally stopped walking. "In here." Ivan piped, stopping in front of another door.

Alfred shot Ivan a narrowed look. Roughly he shoved past the Russian and pushed open the door in a very cautious manner. "You'd better not have..."

Alfred's eyes widened as his voice slowly drawled off.

At the end of the room there was a small, tight bundle of something, shaking like a leaf. You could barely see a tinge of red on the floor. It was kind of curled up with the back against the wall.

"Off you go." Ivan muttered.

"KIKU!" Alfred screeched. He ran up to the little bundle, which turned out to be the missing nation the blonde was looking for. He had his knees drawn up to his chest, wrapped around by his hands. Kiku's face was buried in his arms.

"Holy shit, are you okay!?" Alfred said, panicked. He kneeled by the bundle and put his hand on his shoulders, shaking him as though Kiku was asleep.

The Japanese country stood despondent for a moment. This made Alfred increasingly agitated. "Kiku? Keeks are you there?" He whispered. "Talk to me. It's Alfred."

Seconds later, Kiku slowly raised his head, blinking several times to adjust to the light.

His cheeks were traced with very faint tear stains, and some dark bruises littered his jaw. One of his wounds had opened again and was bleeding, which explained the drops of blood on the floor.

"Alfred..." He coughed, "What... What are you doing here? Ivan..."

"Shit, what the hell did he so to you!?" Alfred took Kiku's face in his hands and examined the listless man frantically.

"Stop it Alfred..." Kiku whined, trying to pull the blonde's hands away from his face.

Alfred complied and stood up rigidly, staring down at the ground for a moment. You could basically feel the intense outrage radiating off of him.

"Ivan."

"..."

"IVAN!"

The nearby Russian huffed. "Yes?"

"You did this to him?"

"I told you he fought pretty hard. I can't just let him try to tear my face off. Still, it was pretty easy, considering he was already half dead. Such a shame though, he used to be such a great, powerful countr-"

Before the Russian could react, Alfred had spun around and barreled into the unprepared country, shoving Ivan to the cold ground. He fisted his hands into his collar and pushed him down farther, pinning him.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!? You fucking monster! Kidnapping him just to get what to want!?"

Alfred's attack didn't seem to have much of an effect on the oppressive Russian. A wry expression spread across Ivan's face, and to Alfred's surprise, he chuckled darkly.

"I should say the same to you. Isn't it your fault that Kiku is like this?"

Alfred stopped and stared down at Ivan, his expression conflicting guilt and anger.

While the American's guard was down, Ivan took his chance to shove Alfred away and snatch the metal pipe that fell to the ground by him, staggering back into his feet and hastily wiping away any bits of dust that fell on him.

Alfred glowered at the Russian harshly. He opened his mouth to shout something at his opponent, but was quickly cut off.

"So... Alfred. I'm sure you want to know what it is that I am interested in..." Ivan said in a mocking tone, slowly striding across the room to Kiku's side. He gestured with his weapon I hand; "...in exchange for him?"

Alfred only gave Ivan his livid glare in return, holding back another attack in fear that the soviet might try to do something to Kiku. "What. The hell. Do. You. Want."

Ivan replied immediately, another leer creeping up on his face.

"The nukes."

Alfred's seething gaze turned to a shocked one, and he stared up at the Russian. "The... Nukes?"

"I want the bombs, Alfred. It's quite a weapon you have, and I think it'll prove useful in my exploits. I've already seen the power of them and the damage they've caused." Ivan grinned toothily and nudged the apathetic, curled up country below him.

Now Alfred understood. And Ivan's unrelenting taunting wasn't making anything better.

But... If Ivan got his hands on the bombs, what kind of insane shit would he do? But then, what about Kiku? Ivan could use the weapons to defeat and take over numerous countries, or use the bombs and missiles against the himself. He would become someone very dangerous to reckon with.

But there was absolutely no way that he would let Ivan touch Kiku again.

"So what will it be?" Ivan broke into Alfred's thoughts. He played with his metal pipe and fiddled with it in his hands, as if testing it.

Alfred's doubtful gaze shifted from Ivan's smug smile to Kiku.

The raven-haired was staring at the ground again, the dejected look on his face making it clear that he was sure of what Alfred's decision was going to be. The blonde frowned deeply at this. Did he really think that?

"What do you think you want to do with those weapons?" Alfred said slowly, returning his watchful eyes to the Russian.

Ivan's smile only became more delightful.

"Oh, nothing much really. As I had said before, I'll just be using them for my own matters when they can be put to use." He laid out the last words forshadowingly.

"And if I don't give them to you?" Alfred responded again, in a quieter tone.

Ivan's voice quickly turned darker. "I think you'd know what would happen to both you and little Kiku here, da." Ivan twirled his pipe around a little in his hand.

Alfred listened carefully at Ivan's words. He didn't speak a word for a while, only standing silently in the middle of the room. This made Ivan a little impatient.

"Can't decide, then?" The scarfed man spoke up gruffly. He shifted his grip on his pipe. "The clock is ticking my friend."

Alfred gritted his teeth. Why did this have to happen? If only he hasn't left, then he nor Kiku would be in this awful mess right now. Ivan left him no choice.

"No... I've decided." Alfred murmured, lifting his head to look at Ivan squarely in the eye. "I'm sorry Ivan, but I can't give you those bombs..."

Ivan tried to speak up, but was interrupted by Alfred again.

"...But I can't let you hurt Kiku either."

The Soviet frowned deeply. He stood contemplating for a short moment.

"That's your choice, da? So be it. Maybe this will change your mind."

The purple-eyed man gave Alfred a shrug, and walked a short distance to stand in front of the curled up victim. Before he could react, Ivan brought him down with a kick against Kiku's head, earning him a trembling outcry from the nation below him.

"Watch closely, Alfred, what I'm about to do."

Holding down the now struggling nation down with a single foot, Ivan's mouth curled wickedly as he lifted the heavy lead pipe above his head with two hands, ready to bring it down on the Japanese country.

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**Nooooo... Ivan you douche...**

**Ugh, I'm tired now ;-;**

**So next morning I have to go back to school Dx oh well, my summer was pretty fun while it lasted. I'll still, of course, be posting. I've got procrastination on my side :D**

**Chapter 5 should be up fairly soon.**


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